When your body stops processing food as energy, producing insulin, or responding to it, you develop diabetes. Insulin is the hormone responsible for delivering glucose to the cells in the body. When you have a lot of glucose in the bloodstream but not in the cells, the blood vessels and nerves can undergo damage. 

Diabetes causes several complications in the body, including vision-related ones. If you have diabetes, make regular visits to the optometrist for them to diagnose issues with your vision resulting from diabetes. Here are the prevalent problems that can affect your eyes:

Diabetic Retinopathy

This happens to be the leading cause of blindness in adults in America. Diabetic retinopathy is when the retina experiences abnormal blood vessel growth or the blood vessels start leaking. Diabetic retinopathy is a severe eye condition that affects people with diabetes. If diagnosed early, the doctor can institute several great treatments. Make regular visits to the eye doctor to get an early diagnosis.

Macular Edema

The macula is the retina's center responsible for sharp straight vision. Diabetes can cause the macula to swell up due to leaking blood vessels. When the macula swells up, it causes distorted or blurred vision. If you have diabetes and your eyesight starts getting blurry, visit your doctor immediately.

Glaucoma

Many forms of glaucoma can affect the eyes; for one, neovascular glaucoma results from diabetes. When you have high blood sugar, the blood vessels in the retina can begin to sustain damage. High blood sugar can also cause new abnormal blood vessels to form on the retina's surface. When these new blood vessels grow on the eye's iris, it can cause an increase in ocular pressure. Consequentially, this can cause neovascular glaucoma.

Cataracts

The increase in blood sugar in the body can cause cataracts to form much quicker and progress faster in people with diabetes. The blood sugar is responsible for the cloudy buildup in the eye's lens, causing cataracts.

Swelling of the Eye Lens

Diabetes can also cause swelling of the eye lens, which causes blurry vision. Primarily, this results from the rapid changes in blood sugar levels between normal and low. It is challenging to get the correct prescription with an unhealthy eye lens, which can affect eye exams. Usually, your vision will return to normal when your blood sugar stabilizes. 

Prevention of Diabetic Eye Diseases

• Control your blood sugar - Your doctor can prescribe strategies to maintain healthy blood sugar. This can help prevent a variety of diabetic eye conditions.
• Lower your cholesterol and blood pressure - These two should remain under control so that they do not cause more complications.
• Quit smoking - Smoking can be harmful to the blood vessels in your eyes. It is healthy to avoid it.
• Protects against UV rays - You ought to protect yourself from harmful UV rays from the sun by wearing sunglasses.

For more on how diabetes affects the eyes, visit Raleigh Eye Center at our offices in Raleigh, Durham, Reidsville, North Carolina, or South Hill, Virginia. You can also call (919) 899-2472 or (919) 876-2427 to book an appointment today.